Hey everyone, Aric here with a difficult but necessary update regarding Duelgeon production.
Unfortunately, we've hit a significant and unexpected roadblock due to sudden, drastic changes in US trade policy. While we had planned and budgeted for potential tariffs, the recently imposed rates on goods from our manufacturing partners (as high as 145%+) are far beyond anything anticipated or sustainable for a small business like ours.
To put it bluntly, this isn't a matter of losing margins; tariffs at these levels make importing the physical game financially impossible. My original $7k manufacturing quote, for example, could balloon to $18k or more just to get the games through customs. This is simply not feasible, and I wouldn't ask you to bear that astronomical cost increase.
The situation is also incredibly volatile, with rates changing unpredictably. Placing an order now carries a huge risk that tariffs could surge even higher by the time the games are ready to ship and reach the US port (a 3-6 month process).
So, what are we doing?
Right now, work is still continuing on finalizing the artwork and the rule book, So if you were an Art Connoisseur please reach to me with whatever reference you want for the game!
However, we are pausing placing the actual manufacturing order until we have more clarity. We're actively exploring a few potential paths forward and desperately need your feedback:
Wait & Hope: We can hold off on manufacturing for now, hoping the tariff situation stabilizes or improves through negotiations. The risk here is continued uncertainty and potential further negative changes.
Explore Other Manufacturing: We are researching alternative manufacturing options in different countries, but realistically, finding partners with the right quality and cost outside the established hubs (like Vietnam) is challenging and may not avoid tariffs entirely.
Shift to Digital: We could pivot focus to creating a polished digital version of Duelgeon for platforms like Steam. This avoids the tariff issue entirely and ensures everyone gets a version of the game, albeit different from the initial physical plan. This would still take development time.
Your Feedback is Crucial, so please let me know what you think the best option is in the discord https://discord.gg/29MJ6FeSaa or with a comment here.
I understand this is frustrating news. My commitment is to deliver something of value to you, my backers. Please let me know your thoughts and preferences on these options, either here in the comments or over on our Discord channel. What path forward would you be most comfortable with under these difficult circumstances?
I also would like to address refunds. Because the funds raised have already been significantly invested in crucial development aspects like artwork, graphic design, prototyping, 3d modeling, and other essential pre-production costs, we unfortunately cannot offer refunds at this time. I know this isn't ideal, but those funds have been spent in good faith towards creating Duelgeon. My focus now is finding the best possible solution to deliver the game in some form despite these external challenges.
I've paused all future projects to dedicate my full attention to resolving this. Thank you so much for your understanding, patience, and support as we navigate this unexpected storm. I'll keep you updated as the situation evolves as best I can, once we have a clear path or enough of you guys have shared how you would like to proceed!
Also here is some of the Art coming in, cant wait to show off more as it comes in! I hope this gets tariff situation gets resolved in a timely manner but either way ill make sure you guys get your money worth!
